CROP PLANNING AND RECORD KEEPING

In recent years there have been a number of new software options to replace the traditional notebook or excel spreadsheet in helping farmers and growers plan complex cropping or grazing schedules and keep track of their records.

Direct sales models often add complexity to farm businesses and it is worth working out systems for planning your production and learning from what has worked or not worked, as well as keeping records that you have to keep for certifiers, quality assurance schemes, trading standards etc.

Simple record keeping systems like a daily notebook, voice memos, or photos with a date signature are a good place to start, as are printed sheets to make notes of essential records. Don’t underestimate how quickly things can slip your mind as busy days go by!

For planning complex operations, some form of spreadsheet or software is likely to be useful. Good, clear systems can take things off your mind and help you plan ahead, allowing you to forecast work flow and focus on what needs to be done, and can make systems easier to communicate, helping others to take on more responsibility.

There are quite a few software options available that integrate parts of the process, reducing manual data entry and making information more accessible to others. However, they all take time to get used to and most charge for a subscription. When well used, they are likely to save you time, but this must be weighed up against your loss of control over the software.

We haven’t reviewed the options here (all from the US) but are keen to hear from farmers and growers about what systems they have found useful and worthwhile.

COG Pro
COG-Pro is designed to keep track of records from the point of developing your seed order right through to recording harvest yields and sales. If used to its fullest extent, growers can track seeds through the entire growing process using lot numbers from seed packages, generate seed records (e.g. demonstrate your search and use of organic seed), produce fields plans, seeding records, fertility records and harvest records. COG-Pro costs $79/year for its crop module, $129 for the crop and GAP modules or the crop and livestock modules or $159 for the crop, GAP and livestock modules. There are prices for a 2 year subscription that provides a discount.

VeggieTables
VeggieTables is designed for small to midsize organic farms and has all of the features of COG-Pro with a few additions, like labour and expense tracking. It also supports multiple user accounts, so different individuals can enter data, allowing you to better manage workers.

One of the most compelling features is that it works offline, so you can make changes while working without a signal (e.g. in the field) and sync the changes to the cloud later when you have internet access. It costs $89/year plus $19 per additional user.

AgSquared
Brings together a range of functions from farm mapping and crop planning to record keeping and harvest records. Tasks can be assigned to specific dates or time periods. Work plans can then be generated and printed for specific days, weeks or months. Once completed, planned tasks can be checked off and then become records of tasks completed. AgSquared subscriptions come in three levels. ‘Simple Farm’ is $10 user/mo for up to 5 users / ‘Total Farm’ costs $50 / user/ mo There is also a third-tier option called Enterprise that is a fully customizable solution.

Farmbrite
Has a whole range of features from crop planning to harvest, farm mapping and weather, livestock management, genealogy records and grazing, equipment and maintenance records and a whole accounting section to track your profits and expenses. You can plan your crops from seed order all the way to your harvest profits. Make notes quickly with the use of QR codes in the field. Track your livestock records and health on the go. Track vaccination and growth records, bill of sale, genealogy charting, grazing and more. You can also track your profits and expenses in the accounting section, track your equipment records, services, images and files and keep a To-Do list by the map of your farm. Pricing is set up so you can either pay as you go or all at once. It starts at $15 a month/$165 a year for Basic, or $30 a month/ $275 a year for Crops or Livestock, or $50 a month/$385 a year for their Professional version that has everything.

Tend
Tend is an all-in-one platform that allows farmers to plan their crops, keep records, manage daily operations and track sales, all in a user-friendly platform available on any device connected to the web. You can create a work plan to achieve production targets, automatically generated tasks, projections of your yield & income, seed ordering amounts, and a map of where each crop will be planted. It also has an online sales feature with integrated pick and pack lists $39 / mo or $399 / yr